Three quarters of UK organisations admit to age discrimination

A staggering 74 per cent of HR professionals admit their organisation discriminates - consciously or unconsciously - on the grounds of age, new survey findings today reveal. Law firm Thomas Eggar conducted the research to gain a better understanding of how UK companies are preparing for imminent age discrimination legislation, due to come into force on 1 October 2006.

The survey, conducted anonymously amongst HR practitioners from a range of businesses, also highlighted a distinct lack of knowledge about the implications of the new laws. Only 14 per cent felt their management team were suitably aware of the issues surrounding age discrimination. This figure dropped to 7 per cent when questioned whether their workforce were aware of the new Regulations.

When asked if they had started preparing for the implementation of the upcoming legislation, 48 per cent responded that, as yet, they had done nothing. Only 7 per cent were confident their internal processes would ensure compliance. This lack of pro-activity can be partly explained by the fact that as few as 11 per cent feel they have been given enough practical information about the impact of the new laws.

Nicola Brown, Associate at Thomas Eggar, believes these findings demonstrate that the real impact of the upcoming legislation is being underestimated: This is one of the most talked about pieces of employment legislation in recent years, so it is worrying to see that the Regulations are not being taken seriously by organisations. In fact our survey shows that almost half of respondents felt the new laws would not, in reality, make any difference to their working practices.

I am surprised at this approach as, from an employment lawyer’s perspective, I think these Regulations will have a significant impact on all organisations. If they do not adapt their practices to cover the new provisions they could face costly discrimination claims.

When the new laws come into force they will seek to ensure equal treatment for all employees irrespective of their age, unless an employer can justify different treatment. The Regulations are going to have a dramatic effect on the recruitment processes of most employers.
The new proposed retirement procedures will also undoubtedly trip up a lot of companies, resulting in claims of automatically unfair dismissal. Whilst currently employees over normal retirement age do not have protection against unfair dismissal this will change with the new Regulations and there will be no upper age limit.

In order to help organisations prepare for their new responsibilities, Thomas Eggar is running a series of workshops for HR professionals at all of its offices across the South-East, and can also provide bespoke training on the new legislation. Please call Paula Thompson on 01293 742827 for further details. For more detailed legal advice on employment issues please contact Nicola Brown of Thomas Eggar’s employment unit on 01243 813179.